Greetings! If you've began to follow us, sorry for the long gap in posts - I was hoping to get this one just under the wire for June but it looks like it will be the first entry of July! This is Chris from the Wildernest here and I just wanted to let you in on one of my favorite parts of Pennsylvania when it comes to outdoor recreation. I'm talking about the Pine Creek area of northern PA. In this area there are opportunities to hike, backpack, camp, bike, fish and hunt. One of my favorite base camps to get this fun started is Little Pine State Park. Little Pine has modern camping facilities along with camping cottages and yurts. If you don't know what those are then I recommend you get on the PA DCNR website and check them out.
I said there are quite a few recreation opportunities, but of course some of our favorites are hiking and backpacking. If you want to get out and backpack PA there are numerous trails in this area: The Black Forest Trail, the Susquehannock Trail System, the Donut Hole Trail, and several other trails that aren't too far out of the region. And don't forget the Pine Creek Rail Trail. In my opinion, that is one of the finest rail trails around and a model of the development of other rail trails. If you've got several days to put together into an adventure, you can backpack the West Rim Trail on the rim of Pine Creek's Grand Canyon and bike back to your starting point through the gorge on the Rail Trail. If you're really adventurous you can go with the trifecta and paddle the creek down, hike up, then bike back down. I haven't paddled it yet but I have done the other two along with many other trails in the vicinity. If you have questions about any of those trails feel free to contact me or stop in the Wildernest for a trail guide.
But, for some of you, maybe backpacking one of those long trails isn't currently in the cards for you. Well, there are many other lesser traveled trails that you can hit for just an afternoon. That's what I did back in May when I took my three oldest sons (ages 6, 4, and 22 months) on a camping trip to Little Pine with some other friends. I've always wanted to hike the entire 9 mile Golden Eagle Trail (I've hiked a portion), but that's a bit aggressive for three young boys. With some research, I happened upon the Bob Webber Trail, a 1.75 mile one way up and back hike to a lookout. (For those that don't know, Bob Webber was a pioneer for several of our PA trails; he and is wife live in a cabin up in the Pine Creek area.) On Saturday afternoon we set off with some friends and their children. I carried the 22-month old on my back, but was a bit anxious about the ability of my four-year-old. My personal rule of thumb is one mile per day per year of age is a cap, and 3.5 miles up a steep hill and back down would be pushing it. I figured go as far as possible and turn around - I've been getting a bit wimpier the older I get!
Well, the six-year-old stormed to the top and the four-year-old just needed a bit of positive coaching; later on I saw there was about 1300 feet of elevation gain which certainly justified the coaching. An ice cream reward down in Waterville capped the hike for the kids. That's another thing I like about the Pine Creek area - lot's of outdoor recreation with some great stops for food and rest.
So, next time you are looking for some great backpacking or camping, go hardcore or take the kids and head up to the Pine Creek area. Look for one of those lesser-traveled trails and enjoy the trip! If you had any more questions about the area, feel free to contact me at thewildernestchris@gmail.com.
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